CAPTAIN ATOM #1
Written by JT Krul
Drawn by Freddie Williams II
Review by Brad Jones
Captain Atom is not a bad book. It is however, such a retread of past work, particularly Watchmen, that I would almost prefer it give in and call itself Dr. Manhattan #1. He even looks like the almost-god from that acclaimed graphic novel, minus the big, blue schlong. One differentiation is his conflict: using his powers is threatening Captain Atom’s ability to literally hold himself together on a molecular level. He can absorb energy into himself and it’s ripping his atoms apart. The other way Atom is different than Manhattan is that he’s clearly displaying much more humanity than the latter, in that he has a sense of humor and smarminess. Tonally, I’m not always on board with Captain Atom, but there’s an undeniable draw to the character. He’s so powerful – too powerful for his own good – but too heroic to protect himself. This is where I’m most interested in the character, and ultimately, the book.
Admittedly, I didn’t know anything about this character before reading #1, but thankfully, the book doesn’t require you to have any kind of encyclopedic knowledge about Atom’s world. Artistically, the book feels similar-ish to Watchmen, especially in the design of Atom and his powers. Whether Captain Atom was introduced before or after Watchmen is beyond my finite knowledge, but considering the Watchmen renaissance a couple of years ago, #1 may have been a good time to change the design of the character to individualize him a little bit more in my opinion.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
There are some peripheral characters introduced that Captain Atom fans may already be familiar with, but the book does not depend upon extensive research to pick up what’s going on.
VERDICT
Buy It – Despite it’s similarities to some other works, Captain Atom has some good – even very good – things about it and definite potential.
